Popular messaging platform Telegram recently unveiled a login authentication system called Telegram Passport. Find out how it works today in our overview.

What is Telegram Passport?

Earlier today, messaging service Telegram introduced its new Telegram Passport. Passport is the first service of the future blockchain-based Telegram Open Network scheduled to launch by the beginning of summer 2018.

Telegram Open Network, or TON, was announced back in January. The company raised $1.7 billion to develop the network. If successful, Telegram will create an entire new economy built across the Telegram Open Network. That economy will allow users to buy goods and services using cryptocurrency. It could be the Amazon of the crypto world.

Telegram Passport is the first service of that network. With Passport, users can upload identity documents and other verification data to attach to their profile. This Passport can be carried between services, allowing users to authenticate themselves once to gain access to multiple online services. It’s a single login that will work across multiple online platforms.

One of the benefits of Passport is that Telegram can avoid the anonymity typically associated with cryptocurrency transactions. Anonymity can be a good thing – but it’s not ideal for online shopping. Governments also have issue with the anonymity of cryptocurrency payments. By removing this layer of anonymity, Telegram Passport could provide the authenticated marketplace of the future.

The Telegram Open Network ecosystem will revolve around the use of Gram tokens. One press release discussing Telegram Passport claims Gram tokens could have a market cap of $200 billion within just 5 years. That’s approximately the same as bitcoin’s current market cap as of May 2018.

How Will Telegram Passport Work?

Telegram Passport will accept various authentication documents to verify your identity. You’ll be able to provide passports, driver’s licenses, utility bills, bank account certificates, and other documents to certify you are who you claim to be.

Passport will also be able to request to take a photo of the user as an extra layer of identification.

Obviously, any time you upload sensitive data like your passport to an authentication service, you should be concerned about security. Fortunately, Telegram Passport will ensure only users have access to their own private data and documents. This data will also be protected via two-factor authentication (2FA). Telegram itself will never have access to your data.

After uploading your data to the Telegram Passport system, you’ll be able to selectively share it with certain services. You might share your Passport data with a bank, for example, in order to quickly verify your identity for a loan. Your documents will be transferred only after you individually agree to the transfer.

At the most basic level, Telegram Passport will allow users to quickly login to Telegram. However, as more products and services get added to the Telegram Open Network, the Passport could provide easy access to hundreds of online services and platforms.

Telegram Passport Features

Some of the core Telegram Passport features include all of the following:

Free: Telegram Passport is free for both users and developers.

Mobile-Ready: Login and authorization pages are optimized for all screen sizes and resolutions.

Open Standards: Telegram Passport uses open standards, including OAuth2 protocol while following RFC standards.

Multiple Localizations: Anyone can participate and translate Telegram Passport into any language.

Minimum Effort Integration: Telegram Passport’s libraries are open source and freely available on Github.

Conclusion

Obviously, Telegram Passport isn’t the only unified authentication system on the market. Facebook, Google, and Microsoft all have similar unified login systems available across the internet. It remains to be seen how quickly Telegram Passport will catch on.

To learn more about Telegram Passport and how it works, visit online today at Telepass.me.